Cheap Theatre in Toronto for the Week of April 16, 2012

Five For Twenty (or Less)

This week’s cheap theatre post has a musical theme. All shows feature music or dance or a bit of both. There is a comedic opera, a romantic gay musical, a period piece, a Tennessee Williams play and even a free contemporary dance show. So try and get out this week and catch a musical evening of theatre for under $20. 

COSI by Louis Nowra (Alumnae Theatre). A theatre director looks to stage Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte with a cast of mental patients in 1970s Australia. Apr 13-28. $20, Wed 2-for-1, Sun pwyc. 70 Berkeley. 416-364-4170, alumnaetheatre.com.

DANCING QUEEN by Sky Gilbert (The Cabaret Company). This fusion of theatre and dance looks at gay romance in an intergenerational love triangle. Previews Apr 18. Opens Apr 19 and runs to Apr 29. $25-$30, stu $20-$24, preview $20, Sun pwyc ($18-$20 adv). Buddies in Bad Times, 12 Alexander. 416-975-8555, ticketweb.ca.

HEART STRINGS, THE MUSICAL (Reynold Nathaniel). In 1908, an Italian apprentice goes to Ireland to deliver an anniversary gift from Germany. Opens Mar 23 and runs to Apr 28. $20-$25.The Annex Live, 296 Brunswick. 416-929-3999.

ORPHEUS DESCENDING/HAPPY END by Tennessee Williams/Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht (George Brown College Theatre School). Williams’s Southern retelling of the Orpheus myth and the Weill/Brecht surrealistic musical comedy are presented in repertory. Opens Apr 10 and runs to Apr 21. $18, srs $12, stu $7. Young Centre for the Performing Arts, 55 Mill. 416-866-8666,youngcentre.ca.

HISTOIRE D’AMOUR The Free Concert Series in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre presents contemporary dance by BoucharDanse company about the search for love. Apr 19 at noon. Free. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 145 Queen W. coc.ca.